Conductors on the move

Words by
Tuuli Elo

Photography by
Nikolaj Lund

Published
10.5.2019

This spring several Finnishconductors have been announcing about new and interesting positions – both in Finland and of course abroad.

Recently, there have been several interesting announcements concerning Finnish conductors. International appointments have been published both with experienced well-known conductors, such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, and young and rising ones like Klaus Mäkelä and Dalia Stasevska.

In 2020 Esa-Pekka Salonen will become the Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony. Currently he is the Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor for the Philharmonia Orchestra and the Conductor Laureate for both the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he was Music Director from 1992 until 2009. According to The New York Times, Salonen hopes to shake up the standard orchestral structure in San Francisco, recruiting artists like Nico Muhly, Claire Chase, Esperanza Spalding, Bryce Dessner and Pekka Kuusisto to help him rethink the possibilities of what a symphonic ensemble can be.

Klaus Mäkelä is rapidly moving ahead on his international career. He is the newly appointed Chief Conductor and Artistic Advisor of Oslo Philharmonic, beginning in the 2020/21 season. He is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Artist in Association with Tapiola Sinfonietta. From 2019 Mäkelä is also Artistic Director of the Turku Music Festival.

In the UK, Dalia Stasevska will be the principal guest conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, being the first woman to be given a conducting position with the orchestra. She makes her debut with the orchestra in her new role at the Proms in July. Sakari Oramo, the Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra since 2012, is also a Finn.

One of the latest announcements is about Osmo Vänskä. He will be the Music Director of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra for the next three years, beginning his first term in January 2020. Until 2022 Vänskä will continue also as the Music Director of the Minnesota Orchestra.

Meanwhile in Finland, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra has elected Nicholas Collon as its next Chief Conductor. Britain’s Collon will be the first non-Finnish Chief Conductor of the orchestra. He will take over in autumn 2021. The present Chief Conductor of the FRSO, Hannu Lintu, has been selected as the new Chief Conductor of the Finnish National Opera and Ballet, starting in January 2022.